While stars such as Barry Hall have been ever-present in the powerful Swans teams that have featured in finals in the past six seasons, it was significant that the coach once labelled the wiry Irishman as the club's "most important player".

At Christmas, I jumped back several feet upon sighting his latest purchase displayed on the kitchen counter: An entire leg of acorn-fed Iberian ham—complete with a black hoof and wiry hairs springing off the ankle.